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Alibaba Cloud Drives a More Sustainable, Efficient and Intelligent Olympic Experience at Milano Cortina 2026

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3 months ago

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  • Transportation Management System mobilizes over 80,000 Olympic stakeholders
  • Media Rights Rights Holders had access to 4,198 video highlights produced by Alibaba Cloud’s Real-Time 360º Replay systems
  • Qwen models power first use of LLM Technologies supporting fan engagement and Olympics ecosystem

MILAN, ITALY – Media OutReach Newswire – 27 February 2026 – In a ongoing effort to redefine the digital landscape of the Olympic Movement, Alibaba Group, the Worldwide TOP Partner of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), has supported the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 (Milano Cortina 2026) in becoming the most intelligent Games in Olympic history.

Through a suite of advanced cloud and AI-driven solutions, Alibaba Cloud, the digital technology and intelligence backbone of Alibaba Group, is empowering the IOC and the Milano Cortina local organizing committee to monitor and manage energy consumption, optimize transportation systems, enhance broadcasting operations, and foster IOC’s first use of LLM technology.

Kirsty Coventry, International Olympic Committee President, said: “Every Olympic Games leaves its own mark in terms of technological innovation. With Alibaba’s Cloud technologies and Qwen models, these Games have set a new benchmark for intelligence and creativity.”

Dr. Feifei Li, Senior Vice President of Alibaba Cloud Intelligence Group, President of International Business, said: “Milano Cortina 2026 marks a milestone with the first use of LLM technologies in the Olympic history powered by Alibaba’s Qwen models. Our cloud and AI-powered systems that supported Milano Cortina 2026 demonstrate our dedication to enabling smarter operations, deeper engagement, and new possibilities for the Olympic Movement.”

Sustainability successes

Alibaba Cloud’s AI-driven sustainability solutions and energy-efficient cloud infrastructure enabled Milano Cortina 2026 to effectively measure and analyze carbon emissions. This move sets a scalable model for future host cities to deliver more energy-efficient and carbon-saving Olympic Games.

Key systems developed and deployed include:

  • Enhanced Energy Data Management System deployed across all competition venues, allowing the Milano Cortina 2026 Organizing Committee and the IOC to monitor and analyse energy consumption and carbon emissions in real time. The IOC is also testing the Intelligent chatbot powered by Alibaba’s Qwen large language models, which enables staff to access both historical and real-time insights on electricity usage and power demand contingency.
  • Energy Issue Tracking System that digitalise workflows for identifying, escalating, and resolving energy anomalies, ensuring rapid responses and improving operational efficiency.
  • Codeveloped Sustainability Platform that allows organisers to assess the full lifecycle footprint of Milano Cortina 2026, with a dedicated focus on generating long-term benefits for local communities.

Accelerating efficiency

Drawing on iconic, world-class winter sports venues, Milano Cortina 2026 unfolded across more than 22,000 square kilometres of northern Italy’s alpine mountains and historic cities. Milano Cortina 2026 marked the Winter Games with the widest geographical spread in Olympic history. Spanning tens of thousands of square kilometres across the Alps, the event utilized Alibaba Cloud’s systems to assist game judging, coordinate logistics and operations, ensuring the Games ran smoothly and efficiently.

The IOC has worked with Alibaba Cloud to debut a sophisticated Video Adjudication system for the Milano Cortina 2026. Built on Alibaba Cloud’s low-latency livestreaming technology, this solution has been integrated into the core competition infrastructure to improve officiating precision. By synchronized management of multi-signal video feeds, the system assists referees in identifying fouls and provides instant arbitration playback to resolve scoring disputes. The technology has been deployed in Freestyle Skiing and Snowboard Slopestyle events to ensure accuracy for the judging panel.

The Transportation Management System (TMS), built on Alibaba Cloud, seamlessly connected venues across vast distances and delivered precise mobility assurance for Olympic stakeholders including IOC staff, athletes, volunteers, media and key personnel. Through the Milano Cortina 2026 Transport App and related system services, athletes and Olympic staff accessed personalised journey planning and real-time updates via connected official transport services. Throughout the Games, the app has mobilized over 80,000 individuals.

Other operational service applications — from e-voucher system supplying meals to tens of thousands of Olympic stakeholders, to meteorological service portal providing real-time weather information for Milano Cortina Organizing Committee to ensure the safety of outdoor competitions — also ran on Alibaba Cloud’s stable and resilient infrastructure.

In addition, the cloud provider’s Apsara Video technology has powered cloud-based live streaming and broadcasting for Milano Cortina 2026, enabling global media access to press conferences, IOC daily briefings, and post-competition athlete interviews in real time. This fully cloud-hosted Game Video Content Distribution service supported journalists with seamless video processing, editing, live and on-demand distribution, and secure download capabilities — all delivered through Alibaba Cloud’s resilient infrastructure.

An AI makeover on Olympic Tradition

Alibaba Cloud introduced an “Intelligent Pin Trading Station” in the Milano Olympic Village, adding an AI-enabled twist to one of the Games’ most cherished traditions.

Powered by Alibaba’s Qwen model, the station combines embodied devices with an AI system capable of understanding both language and visuals. Athletes place a pin into a capsule and interact naturally using voice and gestures. The AI interprets commands in real-time and guides a robotic arm to select a pin left by a previous participant. The result is a playful exchange that connects athletes through a tradition they already love, while broadening the range of people, countries, and stories represented in each trade.

The Intelligent Pin Trading Station demonstrates how cloud-based AI can support new forms of engagement—creating small moments of delight that encourage connection and discovery. Throughout the Games, Alibaba Cloud Intelligent Pin Station facilitated over 8,000 pin exchanges among athletes.

Intelligent by design

At Milano Cortina 2026, Alibaba Cloud’s Qwen large language models powered the first use of LLM technologies in Olympic history, advancing the IOC’s digital transformation and delivering a smarter, more connected Games. Qwen supported a range of applications, from enhancing global fan engagement to streamlining information management and operations across the Olympic ecosystem.

Key platforms — including the Olympic AI Assistant, NOC AI Assistant, and the Sports AI Platform — used Alibaba Cloud’s infrastructure to enable multilingual fan interactions, intelligent content search, and largescale media management. Collectively, these AI-driven systems set new benchmarks for accessibility, efficiency, and intelligence within the Olympic environment.

Broadcasting redefined

In broadcasting, the OBS Live Cloud Platform, powered by Alibaba Cloud, transformed how the Olympic Games were produced and delivered. Replacing traditional satellite operations, the cloud-based platform provided flexible, scalable, and high-quality content distribution of 442 live video feeds for 42 broadcasters worldwide.

Cloud broadcasting significantly reduces the physical footprint. Milano Cortina 2026’s International Broadcasting Centre was 25% smaller than Beijing 2022 and 30% smaller than Pyeongchang 2018.

Complementing this were advanced AI solutions such as the Real-Time 360º Replay systems and the Qwen-powered Automatic Media Description System (AMD). Together, these innovations modernised live production workflows, improved media turnaround speed, and set a new standard for intelligent broadcasting in the Olympic Movement. Throughout the Milano Cortina 2026, AMD has processed livestream signals of 391 competition sessions; meanwhile, Media Rights Holders (MRHs) had access to 4,198 video highlights of exciting moments from the competitions, all captured and produced by Alibaba Cloud’s Real-Time 360º Replay systems.

Through its longstanding collaboration with the IOC, Alibaba Cloud continues to transform the Olympic Games, making them more sustainable, efficient, and intelligent for all participants and audiences worldwide.

Hashtag: #Alibaba

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About Alibaba Cloud

Alibaba Cloud () is a global leader in full-stack artificial intelligence services, offering state-of-the-art intelligent capabilities and a worldwide AI cloud computing network, providing developer-friendly AI services across the globe. Qwen (Chinese: Tongyi Qianwen) is a family of large language and multimodal AI models developed by Alibaba. Debuted in 2023, open-weight Qwen models are available to global developers via HuggingFace and ModelScope.

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“SYNC Design & Innovation in SITE 2026” to Take the Stage in Bangkok

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23 hours ago

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27/05/2026

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Asia’s first Design & Innovation Festival announces its venue and key speakers — where Japanese design expertise meets the cultural diversity of Asia

BANGKOK, THAILAND – Media OutReach Newswire – 27 May 2026 – On Friday, June 26, 2026, SYNC Design & Innovation in SITE 2026 will be held at Siam Paragon, Bangkok — a large-scale forum dedicated to the convergence of design and business. Organized by Nikkei Business Publications, Inc. (Nikkei BP) and co-organized by FOURDIGIT Inc. and the National Innovation Agency (NIA) of Thailand, the event announces its venue and principal speaker lineup.

Event website: https://syncforum.asia
A special program within SITE 2026, one of Southeast Asia’s largest innovation festivals
SYNC Design & Innovation is realized in collaboration with SITE 2026 (June 25–27), the flagship startup and innovation technology festival hosted by NIA and one of the largest of its kind in Southeast Asia. Past editions have drawn more than 30,000 in-person visitors and generated approximately 2.89 million online impressions, establishing SITE as a focal point of the regional innovation calendar across Asia. SYNC will be staged on June 26, the second day of SITE 2026, as a dedicated forum within the festival, positioned as the meeting point where Japanese design intelligence converges with the cultural diversity of Asia.

A landmark gathering of Japan’s leading designers and business leaders

The program brings together pioneers who have carried the power of design from Japan to the global stage:

• Manabu Mizuno (good design company), known for long-horizon brand strategy and total direction
• Eisuke Tachikawa (NOSIGNER), Board of Directors, World Design Organization (WDO)
• Eriko Yamaguchi, founder of MOTHERHOUSE, a brand operating across six Asian markets
• Kazufumi Nagai (Tama Art University), behind the branding of numerous Japanese corporations
• Yoshihiro Yagi (dentsu Japan), recipient of more than 750 awards in Japan and abroad
From the co-organizer, Ryo Taguchi, CEO of FOURDIGIT Inc., who has pioneered UX design within Japan’s digital industry, and Takehiro Suenari, who has led service design practice across Southeast Asia, will also take the stage.

The business track features practitioners working at the intersection of AI, technology and enterprise, including Satoru Yamamoto, who leads AI initiatives across the Dentsu Group; Akio Kazama of ZOZO, Japan’s leading fashion commerce company; and Shinichiro Nishikawa of NTT DATA Global Payment, who has supported international financial innovation. They will be joined by senior leaders of Japanese enterprises based in Thailand.

Thai innovation and design leaders join the stage

From the host city, leaders shaping policy, business and design in Thailand will convene:

• Dr. Krithpaka Boonfueng, Executive Director of NIA, architect of the 4G Strategy for national growth
• Dr. Chakrit Pichyangkul, Executive Director of the Creative Economy Agency (CEA), driving Thailand’s creative economy
• Dr. Surapant Meknavin of the National Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation Policy Council (NXPO), leading AI policy and digital transformation
• Dr. Nares Damrongchai, an international leader of organizational transformation
• Sumpatha Jadee, Senior Designer at Farm Group
A special live performance bridging music and innovation

Beyond the business and design sessions, SYNC will feature live performances by acclaimed Japanese and Thai artists, designed to symbolize the fusion of business and creativity and to broaden the event’s reach to wider audiences.

Featured artists include: Wednesday Campanella, KIKI, EYE VDJ MASA (with ALS MASATANE MUTO), Takahito Uchisawa (androp), STEREO DIVE FOUNDATION, Tom Kawada, Ohzora Kimishima, Hana Taguchi, inmintcondition, and others.

Special guest: Kumamon to appear with Manabu Mizuno

The forum welcomes a special guest from Japan: Kumamon, Sales and Happiness Manager of Kumamoto Prefecture. The beloved mascot will share the stage with creative director Manabu Mizuno, who designed Kumamon.

Event Overview
Name SYNC Design & Innovation in SITE 2026
Date Friday, June 26, 2026
Venue Paragon Hall, 5th Floor, Siam Paragon, Bangkok, Thailand
Admission Free (advance registration required)
Languages Thai / English / Japanese
Website https://syncforum.asia
Organizer Nikkei Business Publications, Inc.
Production & Co-organizers FOURDIGIT Inc., National Innovation Agency (NIA), Thailand
Supported by Creative Economy Agency (CEA)
Production partners Y’s Connection Inc., J-WAVE, Inc., iDID

Hashtag: #FOURDIGIT

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Huawei Code4Mzansi Highlights Developers Building for South Africa’s Real Economy

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1 day ago

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26/05/2026

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Code4Mzansi highlights the growing strength of South Africa’s developer ecosystem and the role of youth-led innovation in shaping the country’s digital future

JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA – Media OutReach Newswire – 26 May 2026 – South Africa’s emerging developers are building close to the ground, with many of the strongest solutions at the inaugural Huawei Code4Mzansi finals focused on systems people use every day: township retail, healthcare, energy, agriculture, payments and the creative economy.

The winners at the Huawei Developer Competition, Code4Mzansi

The competition was held in partnership with the Department of Small Business Development. “The Code4Mzansi competition is not just a celebration of achievement, it is a launchpad for the future,” said Minister Stella Ndabeni, whose department co-hosted the event and delivered the closing address.

The finals revealed a clear shift from building abstract digital products to practical tools that help small businesses trade better, communities access services more easily, and local industries solve problems faster.

Four finalist teams focused directly on the township economy, with solutions covering food safety verification for spaza shops, offline point-of-sale systems built for load-shedding, WhatsApp-native marketplaces for informal retailers, and community credit systems for SASSA grant recipients.

Others addressed AI-driven healthcare access, electricity theft detection, smart agriculture, financial infrastructure for the creator economy, and AI-generated African music.

Held at Huawei Office Park in Woodmead, the finals brought together more than 100 attendees, including government representatives, academic partners, industry leaders and media.

“The quality of the finalist solutions demonstrated the potential of local innovation to respond to real market needs,” said Steven Chen, Cloud CEO of Huawei Technologies South Africa.

Academic partners included the University of Pretoria, the University of Johannesburg, the University of the Witwatersrand and the University of Cape Town.

“Small businesses are the backbone of our economy, and technology is their greatest accelerator. The participants here today are future entrepreneurs who will drive South Africa’s digital economy forward,” said Professor Thokozani Shongwe, Vice Dean of Postgraduate Studies, Research and Internationalisation at the University of Johannesburg’s Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment.

Industry partner rain also attended. Leon Nortje, Principal and Senior Architect at rain, said the competition offered a strong view of the country’s emerging technology pipeline.

“It is always good to see new projects and new teams working on solutions that are valuable and industry-related. We will be looking out for potential new employees,” said Nortje.

The winners

The finalists competed for a prize pool of R800,000. MAAT by SIMVAK was named the overall grand winner and received the Business Value Award, taking home R300,000. The platform addresses food safety and regulatory compliance in South Africa’s informal retail sector through AI agents, real-time product recall alerts, and counterfeit detection for the spaza shop ecosystem.

“The spaza network is the supply chain for most South African households,” said SIMVAK founder Shingirayi Mandebvu.

HealthHive by FTCK received second prize in the Business Value Award category, taking home R200,000, for its AI telemedicine platform that matches patients with the right medical practitioners based on their symptoms.

Auraa received the Grand Innovation Award for its AI music engine built to generate authentic African sound. The platform has been associated with an album that has crossed one million streams.

The Future Star Award went to e-Khadi, a community credit and stokvel platform giving SASSA grant recipients access to essentials at their local spaza shops, supported by AI-assisted credit scoring and fraud detection.

The People’s Choice Award, voted by the public on Huawei’s social media channels, went to DevRift, a semi-finalist in the competition, who took home R100,000.

Minister Ndabeni delivered the closing address, positioning Code4Mzansi within the government’s agenda for youth entrepreneurship, small business development and digital inclusion.

“Our task is to ensure that innovation does not remain a moment of applause, but becomes a pathway to enterprise creation, digital inclusion, and sustainable growth,” she said.

“Thank you to Huawei for being a perfect partner on the journey that we are travelling, and of course, those that matter most, the developers who dared to compete,” she said.

Code4Mzansi forms part of the global Huawei Cloud Developer Competition. In its inaugural edition, South Africa attracted more participants than any other country: 1,041 across 353 teams, including 176 enterprise teams, resulting in the highest enterprise participation rate among all competing markets. Twenty semi-finalists were selected before the top nine advanced to the final.

For the finalists, the work is just beginning. As Minister Ndabeni said, “Go home today proud. But tomorrow, wake up, build again.”

Hashtag: #Huawei #Code4Mzansi #SouthAfrica






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About Huawei

Founded in 1987, Huawei is a leading global provider of information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure and smart devices. With 213,000 employees operating in over 170 countries, we serve more than three billion people worldwide.

Huawei is committed to bringing digital to every person, home, and organisation for a fully connected, intelligent world. In 2025, Huawei generated CNY880.9 billion in revenue, reinvesting 21.8% (CNY192.3 billion) into R&D, with about 53.7% of its employees working in R&D. As a private company fully owned by its employees, Huawei focuses on customer-centric innovation and open collaboration to create lasting value and drive technological breakthroughs globally.

For more information, please visit Huawei online at www.huawei.com or follow us on:






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Hong Kong’s first astronaut participates in Shenzhou-23 manned spaceflight mission

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2 days ago

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26/05/2026

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HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 26 May 2026 – At 11.08pm on May 24, Dr Lai Ka-ying made history by becoming the first Hong Kong astronaut to blast off into space aboard the Shenzhou-23 manned spaceship. This momentous occasion also launched a new era for Hong Kong’s development of innovation and technology (I&T) as well as the city’s participation in national development under China’s 15th Five-Year Plan.

Congratulating Dr Lai on her achievement, John Lee, Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), said that the HKSAR can “transform from a ‘supporter’ of the country’s great aerospace endeavours into an ‘executor’ “.

Dr Lai Ka-ying (left) made history by becoming the first Hong Kong astronaut to blast off into space aboard the Shenzhou-23 manned spaceship.

“This not only demonstrates the HKSAR’s capability in contributing to the country’s development into an aerospace power, but also showcases how Hong Kong could better integrate into and serve the overall national development,” Mr Lee said.

“This mission is of great significance, as it is not only the first manned spaceflight mission during the 15th Five-Year Plan period, but also the first time for a payload expert from the HKSAR to participate in it.”

The Shenzhou-23 crew will conduct on-orbit rotation with the Shenzhou-21 crew. The crew, including Dr Lai, will stay in the space station and conduct multiple experiments and applications in various fields such as scientific applications.

The Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry of the HKSAR Government, Professor Sun Dong, led a delegation to the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center to witness this historic moment. Members of the delegation included other government representatives, I&T experts, youths and students.

“I truly believe this is a great demonstration of Hong Kong integrating into and serving the overall national development through concrete actions, while contributing our strength in I&T,” Professor Sun said.

” ‘Science and technology is primary productive force, talent is primary resource, and innovation is primary driver of growth.’ The HKSAR Government will continue to drive the development of I&T, accelerate the establishment of an international I&T centre, and make greater contributions to building our nation into a strong power in science, technology, and aerospace.”

Commissioner for Innovation and Technology of the HKSAR Government, Mr Ivan Lee, said that the Government had been providing funding support for universities and research institutions in conducting aerospace technology-related projects through the Innovation and Technology Fund.

“In 2024, we launched a special call for funding applications, inviting universities to submit project proposals related to aerospace technology. Following a selection process, we supported six projects. Among them was the Multi‑Spectral Imaging Carbon Observatory (MUSICO) developed by a team from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology,” he said.

On the Tiangong Space Station, Dr Lai will conduct experiments including operating the MUSICO — the world’s first lightweight, high-resolution synergistic observatory for carbon dioxide and methane emission point sources.

The Long March 2F Y23 carrier rocket carrying the Shenzhou-23 manned spaceship launched successfully at 11.08pm on May 24 at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center. ‎
The Long March 2F Y23 carrier rocket carrying the Shenzhou-23 manned spaceship launched successfully at 11.08pm on May 24 at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center. ‎

Born and raised in Hong Kong, Dr Lai is a Superintendent of the Hong Kong Police Force. In the recruitment exercise of China’s fourth batch of preparatory astronauts launched in 2022, she was successfully selected as a payload expert and was deployed to the China Astronaut Research and Training Center for training.

Before embarking on the historic spaceflight, Dr Lai expressed hope that it would inspire more Hong Kong youths to devote themselves to the field of I&T, thereby contributing to the country’s scientific and technological self-reliance and strength.

Hashtag: #HongKong #BrandHongKong #I&T #aerospace #technology





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